The closure of the popular beach of Maya Bay in Krabi province for four months will reduce tourism earnings for the province by just 6 percent because tourists still pour into other tourist destinations in the province, according to the Siam Commercial Bank’s research centre.
Pullawat Pitigraisorn, an analyst at SCB’s Economic Intelligence Centre (EIC), said that other popular tourist destinations of Krabi such as Ko Poda, Sa Morakot, Talay Waek and Railay beach still attract tourists and can compensate for the closure of Maya Bay for ecological rehabilitation.
Marine national park division of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plants Conservation announces the closure of Maya Bay in Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi from June 1 to September 30.
Worapot Lomlim, chief of Hat Noppharat Thara-Mu Ko Phi Phi national park, said during the 4-month closure of the beach, tourism operators are not allowed to undertake any tourism activity on the beach, but tourists can still observe the beauty of the beach from their boats.
He added that, in the future, the number of tourists visiting the beach will be kept at 2,000 a day instead of 4,000-5,000 a day.
The EIC has proposed the government and the private sector to join hands in resolving the problem of over-concentration of tourists at certain tourist destinations in order to preserve natural resources at the tourist destinations on a sustainable basis.
Mr Pullawat said tourism operators should add lesser-known destinations in their sight-seeing programs.
EIC also proposed that the government should adjust the entry fees to tourist destinations in conformity with the number of visiting tourists to attract “quality” tourists.
Aekkavit Pinyothammanothai
Aekkavit Pinyothammanothai, president of the Tourism Industry Council of Krabi, said he agreed with the idea of controlling the number of tourists visiting tourist destinations in the marine national park, Maya Bay in particular, because too many tourists can ruin the environment of the tourist destinations.
Although the closure of Maya Bay would affect tourism revenue in the province, but the measure would help protect natural resources and environment of the famous beach in the long run, he added.
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